♝
Non-sexual Acts of Intimacy - my muse responding to…
♝: Reading a book together.
Two boys sat together on a lavish couch, laden with a grand red velvet covering that they had nestled comfortably in. They were buried beneath thick covers in the midst of an uncommonly stormy night, the older of the two who was the tender age 8 embracing his younger brother of 6 with an arm, while his other was wrapped round a large book.
“If you keep crying, I won’t be able to finish reading, Taru. We have to sleep soon, okay?”
“Okay.” Came the small voice in return. Taruka’s eyes were dampened with fear from the loud sounds of the irregular storms that would befall Peru, and while Amaru himself was scared, he had to be strong - for his little brother at least. The occasional sniffle interrupted Amaru’s words as he read, words formed expertly for his age, while it seemed the storms would silence for the emperor’s son to finish his story. His words flowed out, lips forming vowels eloquently, almost too eloquently for a boy of his age.
“…Then the tyrant king looked at the people he tormented for so long, and… and realised that what he was doing was meaningless. The hate that he held for so long, was baseless now. These were innocent people being held accountable for actions they didn’t commit, and it took him 30 years to realise that.
30 years of valuable time that he couldn’t get back no matter how much he tried.
His eyes mellowed, hard gaze softening into a look full of sorrow and apology. So with the last bit of authority he had left in him, he used it to rebuild the connection with his people that he had lost for so long. He wanted to be a goo–”
“Ruru, what does ‘authowitty’ mean?”
Amaru paused with a sigh to look at the boy who was looking up at him with eyes so innocent and large with curiosity that he couldn’t help but let out a smile far too wise for his features. His hand raised to pet his younger brother, fingers running through soft locks of hair for a short while before he placed the book down.
“I don’t know, Taru. I only know how to read it but I don’t understand it. Maybe we’ll learn it when we’re older. Shall we sleep? The storm’s gone now.”
“…Nng, yeah…”